SITE HISTORY

The Navy acquired the majority of the Makalapa Crater Navy Salvage Yard (NSY) as part of the 1939 expansion of Naval Yard Pearl Harbor, which included Makalapa Crater. Prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor, the area was used for dredge spoil disposal. During World War II, Makalapa Crater NSY was used as a salvage yard, burning dump and solid waste landfill for disposal of materials from cleanup operations and damaged equipment, such as metal scrap, engine parts, empty ammunition casings, airplane parts and ship parts. The property lies immediately east of Interstate H-1 and Naval Station Pearl Harbor, which is now part of the active Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam. 

The Makalapa Crater NSY was approved as a Formerly Used Defense Site (FUDS) in 2015. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Honolulu District is currently conducting environmental cleanup activities on the property under the FUDS program.

The 19.3-acre site is occupied by portions of two public schools: Admiral Arthur W. Radford High School (property owned by the city and county of Honolulu) and Makalapa Elementary School (property owned by the Department of Land and Natural Resources). The Makalapa Crater NSY also occupies a portion of the H-1 Interstate adjacent to the northwest corner of RHS and a portion of Bougainville Drive adjacent to the south RHS boundary.

Classrooms and administrative facilities are not within the FUDS boundary and not a FUDS. Only the RHS athletic complex (football, baseball and softball fields, tennis courts, gymnasium and small basketball court) and the MES playground (two school trailers and a playground) are located within the FUDS project boundary for the Makalapa Crater NSY and are the only areas of the two schools that are being studied.

PROJECT STATUS

USACE is planning field work at the site in spring 2024 as part of the current Remedial Investigation to refine understanding about the nature and extent of contamination. Sampling activities will not impact school operations and are expected to take two weeks. These activities are being conducted in accordance with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA). The data collected will be shared with the Hawaii Department of Health and used to determine next steps. All findings will be made public, and input will be sought from our counterparts at the State of Hawaii HDOH, school administrators, and from interested parties in the public. 

The two campuses continue to be deemed safe by USACE and state health officials for school operations.

USACE is committed to expanding public understanding about the CERCLA process in partnership with our city and state stakeholders, including the Hawaii Department of Education and the Department of Health. Project updates will be coordinated through the Department of Education and made available on this project webpage.

Community can also stay informed and engaged by establishing a Restoration Advisory Board, or RAB for this project. A solicitation for community interest in establishing a RAB will be made available through stakeholder organizations, local media and this project webpage. 

PAST ACTIONS

During work to replace the running track at RHS, a construction contractor for the State of Hawaii Department of Education encountered buried debris and stained soil. In 2014, the Navy contracted for an expedited cleanup action (Time-Critical Removal Action, or TCRA) including sampling, removing and disposing stockpiled soil to ensure the safety of the students and public. The area remediated under the Navy’s TCRA included the football field and surrounding track area. More information about the Navy’s TCRA at the RHS track and football field can be found in the Navy's TCRA Fact Sheet and TCRA Frequently Asked Questions.

In 2015, the former Navy property at the RHS athletic complex and MES playground was approved as a Formerly Used Defense Site (FUDS) and remediation was transferred to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to assess any remaining risk and determine future cleanup actions as prescribed by CERCLA. CERCLA is a multi-step process that provides a consistent and thorough approach for determining risk and cleanup goals that ensures public, stakeholder and state regulatory input during the process.

In 2016, USACE completed a preliminary assessment of the site, followed by a remedial investigation in 2017 which included sampling soils for contaminants of potential concern.  Initial sampling determined that there is no unacceptable risk to students or school operations; however, given the historical waste disposal activities at the site, soil vapor and soil gas samples are also being collected.

OUR MISSION

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is committed to remediating FUDS-eligible properties like the Makalapa Crater NSY on behalf of the Department of Defense and in accordance with mandated processes and requirements. USACE Honolulu District executes the FUDS program here in Hawaii on behalf of the Army and DOD, and in close coordination with the lead regulatory agency, the Hawaii Department of Health.

The FUDS program cleans up properties formerly owned by, leased to or otherwise possessed by the U.S. and under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Defense prior to October 1986. These properties are known as FUDS. The U.S. Army and DOD are dedicated to protecting human health and the environment by investigating and, if required, cleaning up potential contamination that may remain on these properties from past DOD activities.

ESTIMATED PROJECT MILESTONES

• The Remedial Investigation Report / Human Health Risk Assessment is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2024. (The remedial investigation determines nature and extent of contamination.)
• The Feasibility Study Updates are scheduled to take place through mid-2025. (The feasibility study analyzes alternative remedial actions.)
• A Proposed Plan is scheduled for 2025-2026. (The proposed plan presents evaluation of alternatives for site cleanup and recommends remedy selection.)
• A Decision Document will be approved by the end of 2026. (Documents the final remedy for the site.)
• Following the Decision Document, a remedial design will be complete in 2027-2028 with remedial action-construction to begin in late 2028-2029.